MORE than 100 hectares of land in the Avon Industrial Park has been acquired by the CBH Group to secure the future of the Meenaar receival site for the increasing grain deliveries in the area.
Currently used as a temporary grain storage site to cater for last year's record harvest and this year's significant crop, Meenaar will be converted into permanent storage.
The site consists of four temporary open bulkheads, a sample hut, mobile weighbridge and drive-over-grid (DOG), with approval to build a further five temporary open bulkheads for harvest this year, taking the total storage to 374,660 tonnes.
CBH chief executive officer Ben Macnamara said the Avon Industrial Park was in a strategic location and the Meenaar site supplements the nearby Avon receival site and surrounding sites in the Kwinana South catchment area.
"CBH is pleased to have made this investment and is looking forward to working with DevelopmentWA and the Wheatbelt Development Commission to develop the site and bring economic benefits to regional communities," Mr Macnamara said.
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"The additional grain storage at Meenaar takes the pressure off neighbouring sites and provides benefits for the network and all growers.
"This large site will future proof the potential to cater for long-term growth in the region.
"We have plans to develop a large, long-term site for grain receivals, which will include permanent storage with fixed inloading infrastructure, a permanent sample hut and weighbridge, and rail outloading infrastructure, subject to approvals."
On the outskirts of Northam on both interstate rail and road networks, the 470-hectare Avon Industrial Park accommodates a number of businesses servicing the rural, resources and mineral processing industries.
CBH's 105ha purchase is the single largest development in the park's history and is a significant economic development opportunity for Northam and the broader Avon sub-region.
The project is expected to generate up to 140 jobs at the peak of construction, with 40 ongoing jobs in operations and transport.
Agriculture and Regional Development Minister Alannah MacTiernan said it was a significant investment which would benefit both the regional economy and the WA agricultural industry.
"The investment and work underway to further activate and expand the park forms part of the State government's broader commitment to diversify regional economies and enhance freight efficiencies to benefit WA businesses," Ms MacTiernan said.
"The State government will continue to work with local government and industry to maximise these economic benefits."
The Meenaar site is one of 11 CBH sites to receive a portion of the $200 million of funds from State and Federal governments through the Agricultural Supply Chain Initiative (ASCI).
Government funding will go towards constructing new and extending existing rail sidings which will further improve outloading to deliver more tonnes to port and on to customers.
"We are pleased to see the State and Federal governments support and fund critical transport infrastructure, which will help revitalise regional economies and enable Western Australian agricultural produce to reach export markets more efficiently," Mr Macnamara said.
"We are looking forward to continuing working with all stakeholders and delivering these Package 1 projects, and developing other ASCI packages in the future."
Further development of CBH's Meenaar site is part of the co-operative's $4 billion investment in the network over the next 10 years to improve its supply chain's capacity and associated infrastructure.
"Our goal is to increase our monthly export capacity to 3mt by 2033, when we celebrate the co-operative's centenary," he said.
"This elevated level of investment in our network is needed to match the pace with the increasing crop size produced by WA growers and meet export market demand."
